Refrigerator art jewelry

ABSTRACT

A method and machine for making personalized jewelry. A picture or drawing, preferably one with sentimental value, is scanned or digitally imported into a computer and saved as image data. The image data is manipulated by the computer&#39;s software and is used along with parameter information input by an operator to create numerical milling controls that are sent to a milling machine. The control instructions are executed by the milling machine and the result is that a replica of the scanned picture or drawing is milled into a piece of precious metal that is held by the machine. The piece of precious metal with the replicated image can be adapted to be worn as a pendant, a charm, earrings or as other types of jewelry. The method can be used to turn a whimsical piece of “refrigerator art” into a long lasting and treasured piece of “refrigerator art jewelry”, for example. Coloring agents can optionally be applied to milled areas of the metal to reproduce color drawings or pictures.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to the field of jewelrydesign and manufacturing, and more specifically to a method for turningpictures and drawings into pendants and other jewelry.

[0002] Jewelry holds an important place in history and continues to playan integral role in society. The giving and receiving of preciousmetals, rare stones and other forms of jewelry has been the universalsign of love, gratuity and loyalty. Such gifts allow the poorest ofrecipients to temporarily feel like royalty. Rare stones, such as rubiesand emeralds, can be cut and polished to accent light that shinesthrough the stone and subsequently mounted on a ring or worn as apendant. Precious metals, such as gold and silver, can also be worn asrings and pendants but have the additional characteristic of beingmalleable. This characteristic allows these metals to be shaped intomany different forms, thus giving jewelry making many morepossibilities. Precious metals can also be engraved with a name,initials or a short message, to personalize the gift. Personalizinggifts and otherwise making gifts unique gives an additional quality tothe gift.

[0003] A novel way of personalizing a piece of jewelry for a parent isto turn a drawing made by their child into a piece of jewelry. Forexample, a drawing that had hung in the kitchen on the refrigerator fora period of time could be memorialized as a gold pendent that containeda replication of the family's “refrigerator art”. The present methodinvolves digitally capturing a picture or drawing in a computer. Thepicture is then manipulated so as to produce milled and unmilled areas.Numerical codes are then produced and downloaded to a milling machineand a picture or drawing is replicated on the piece of metal in a 3 axisor 2 dimension cutting or a 4 axis or 3 dimension cutting by thecomputerized milling machine. Computer aided drawings as well as scannedin pictures are manipulated by the computer as to size, shape, anddistortion. A milling numerical code is then produced by software andstored in memory. The milling numerical code is downloaded to themilling machine software and milling takes place. The piece of metal tobe milled is held by a portion of the milling hardware during themilling process. Upon completion of the present method, the resultingpiece of jewelry provides a permanent reminder of the picture or drawingthat was imported into the computerized milling machine.

[0004] During the early part of the 20th century, machine tools wereenlarged and accuracy improved. After 1920 they became more specializedin their applications. From about 1930 to 1950 more powerful and rigidmachine tools were built to effectively utilize the improved cuttingmaterials that had become available. These specialized machine toolsmade it possible to manufacture standardized products economically. Themachines, however, lacked flexibility and they were not adaptable to avariety of products or to variations in manufacturing standards. As aresult, in the past three decades engineers have developed highlyversatile and accurate machine tools that have been adapted to computercontrol, making possible the economical manufacture of products ofcomplex design.

[0005] Optical scanners are computer input devices that uselight-sensing equipment to scan paper or another medium, translating thepattern of light and dark (or color) into a digital signal that can bemanipulated by either optical character recognition software or graphicssoftware. A frequently encountered type of scanner is “flatbed,” meaningthat the scanning device moves across or reads across a stationarydocument. On a flatbed scanner such as the common office copier, suchobjects are placed face down on a flat piece of glass and scanned by amechanism that passes under them. Another type of flatbed scanner uses ascanning element placed in a stationary housing above the document.Other scanners work by pulling in sheets of paper, which are scanned asthey pass over a stationary scanning mechanism, as in the common officefax machine. Some specialized scanners work with a standard videocamera, translating the video signal into a digital signal forprocessing by computer software. A popular type of scanner is thehand-held scanner, so called because the user holds the scanner in hisor her hand and moves it over the document to be scanned. Hand-heldscanners have the advantage of relatively low cost.

[0006] Regarding the milling process, there are many different methodsfor removing selected areas from a piece of metal. In a milling machine,a workpiece is fed against a circular device with a series of cuttingedges on its circumference. The workpiece is held on a table thatcontrols the feed against the cutter. The table conventionally has threepossible movements: longitudinal, horizontal, and vertical; in somecases it can also rotate. Milling machines are the most versatile of allmachine tools. Flat or contoured surfaces may be machined with excellentfinish and accuracy. Angles, slots, gear teeth, and recess cuts can bemade by using various cutters.

[0007] Grinding is the removal of metal by a rotating abrasive wheel;the action is similar to that of a milling cutter. The wheel is composedof many small grains of abrasive, bonded together, with each grainacting as a miniature cutting tool. The process produces extremelysmooth and accurate finishes. Because only a small amount of material isremoved at each pass of the wheel, grinding machines require fine wheelregulation. The pressure of the wheel against the workpiece can be madevery slight, so that grinding can be carried out on fragile materialsthat cannot be machined by other conventional devices.

[0008] Unconventional machine tools include plasma-arc, laser-beam,electrodischarge, electrochemical, ultrasonic, and electron-beammachines. These machine tools were developed primarily to shape theultrahard alloys used in heavy industry and in aerospace applicationsand to shape and etch the ultrathin materials used in such electronicdevices as microprocessors.

[0009] Plasma-arc machining (PAM) employs a high-velocity jet ofhigh-temperature gas to melt and displace material in its path. Thematerials cut by PAM are generally those that are difficult to cut byany other means, such as stainless steels and aluminum alloys.

[0010] Laser-beam machining (LBM) is accomplished by preciselymanipulating a beam of coherent light (or laser) to vaporize unwantedmaterial. LBM is particularly suited to making accurately placed holes.The LBM process can make holes in refractory metals and ceramics and invery thin materials without warping the workpiece. Extremely fine wirescan also be welded using LBM equipment.

[0011] Electrodischarge machining (EDM), also known as spark erosion,employs electrical energy to remove metal from the workpiece withouttouching it. A pulsating high-frequency electric current is appliedbetween the tool point and the workpiece, causing sparks to jump the gapand vaporize small areas of the workpiece. Because no cutting forces areinvolved, light, delicate operations can be performed on thinworkpieces. EDM can produce shapes unobtainable by any conventionalmachining process.

[0012] Electrochemical machining (ECM) also uses electrical energy toremove material. An electrolytic cell is created in an electrolytemedium, with the tool as the cathode and the workpiece as the anode. Ahigh-amperage, low-voltage current is used to dissolve the metal and toremove it from the workpiece, which must be electrically conductive. Awide variety of operations can be performed by ECM; these operationsinclude etching, marking, hole making, and milling.

[0013] Ultrasonic machining (USM) employs high-frequency, low-amplitudevibrations to create holes and other cavities. A relatively soft tool isshaped as desired and vibrated against the workpiece while a mixture offine abrasive and water flows between them. The friction of the abrasiveparticles gradually cuts the workpiece. Materials such as hardenedsteel, carbides, rubies, quartz, diamonds, and glass can easily bemachined by USM.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0014] A method and machine that replicates a picture or drawing onto apiece of precious metal which can subsequently be worn as jewelry. Themethod comprises the steps of capturing a digital representation of thepicture or drawing through digital devices such as scanners and digitalcameras, integrating the digital representation into instructions thatcontrol a computerized milling machine, and using the machine toreproduce the picture or drawing on a piece of precious metal whereinthe precious metal can subsequently be worn as jewelry. The picture ordrawing can be any scannable picture or drawing or digitally capturedpicture or drawing created by a novice or professional and preferablehas some sentimental value to the wearer of the jewelry. The presentsystem also allows for replication of color pictures and drawings. Thesystem may comprise separate modules that are electrically connected orone integrated unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The invention of the present application will now be described inmore detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, given only byway of example, in which:

[0016]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the present system;

[0017]FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the steps of the present method;

[0018]FIG. 3(a) is an example of a child's drawing;

[0019]FIG. 3(b) is an example a piece of jewelry made with the presentmethod;

[0020]FIG. 4(a) is an example of a professional drawing;

[0021]FIG. 4(b) is an example of a piece of jewelry made with thepresent method; and,

[0022]FIG. 5 is another example of a piece of jewelry made using thepresent method.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023]FIG. 1 shows the main components of the present jewelry makingsystem. Digital capturing device 1 is used to import an image containedin a picture or drawing into the memory of computer 2. Digital capturingdevice 1 can be a scanner, a digital camera or other similar device. Theimported image can be from any picture or drawing, with the idea beingthat the founder the person is of the picture or drawing, the founderthey will be of the resulting piece of jewelry. Alternatively, if theimage to be captured is already in digital form, such as a computerassisted drawing or an e-mail, then the image can be imported directlyto computer 2. The captured image is stored as a digital representationof the imported picture or drawing. This “image data” is processed bycomputer 2 and a set of machine instructions are produced. The machineinstructions are sent to computer controlled milling machine 3 and areused to control the actions of machine 3. During the milling process,the picture or drawing is milled into a piece of metal, such as gold, bycomputer controlled milling machine 3. Machine 3 has the ability toreproduce intricate details of the imported drawing. Coloring agentssuch as colored resins or enamels can be added into milled areas toproduce a final colored product.

[0024] The main components are shown in FIG. 1 as three separate modulesthat are electrically connected to each other. However in physicalembodiments, the system may comprise separate modules or the modules canbe combined into one integrated unit. In all embodiments, the systemprovides a user interface, such as a keyboard and display unit, forinput by the operator.

[0025]FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the main steps involved in the presentmethod of personalized jewelry making. In step 4, a picture, drawing orother image is digitally captured and imported into the system. One ofthe first drawings used by the present system was a young child'sdrawing that had previously been hung on the family's refrigerator door.The whimsical drawing was turned into a personalized pendant that servesas a lasting reminder to the family of a special time. Of course if theimage is already in digital form, then step 4 can be skipped. Thepicture or drawing can be by a child, a novice, or a professionalartist. Further, the image to be imported can also simply behandwriting, wherein a handwritten message, for example, would then bereproduced on the piece of metal. In step 5, a digital representation ofthe picture or drawing is stored in the system's memory as image data.In step 6, the image data is processed by the system to create a set ofinstructions that when executed by the milling machine will reproducethe imported image on a piece of metal. The present method works verywell on gold and silver, but is not limited to these two preciousmetals, and may be used on other appropriate materials as well. In mostcases, the imported image will be reduced in size when it is replicatedon the metal. Also in step 6, an operator of the machine inputsparameters such as the type of metal to be milled and the desired sizeof the milled image. These “type” and “size” parameters are used in step6 to create the set of machine instructions. In step 7, the machineinstructions are sent to and executed by the milling machine. As aresult of executing the instructions created in step 6, a replica of thecaptured image from step 4 is milled into the piece of metal. Optionallyfollowing step 7, color can be added by filling milled areas withcoloring agents so that color images can also be replicated.

[0026]FIG. 3(a) is a sample child's drawing 8 that is typically broughthome by the child that made it, given to the parents and hung on thefamily refrigerator as “refrigerator art”. These drawings can hold aspecial place in the hearts of the parents and many parents never forgetcertain pieces of their family's “refrigerator art”. In FIG. 3(b), thedrawing has been turned into a piece of “refrigerator art jewelry”.Necklace 9 holds the piece refrigerator art jewelry, pendant 10, whichis a reproduction of drawing 8 in FIG. 3(a). Enhancement 11 shows theenlarged image that has been milled into pedant 10. The image on pendant10 is a duplicate of the image in drawing 8.

[0027] FIGS. 4(a) & (b) are similar to FIGS. 3(a) & (b), respectively,except that this time a professional drawing 12 has been used as theimage to be scanned or imported. Professional drawing 12 is scanned byor imported to the present system, a set of machine instructions iscreated and executed, and the resulting piece of jewelry is shown inFIG. 4(b) as pendant 14, which hangs on necklace 13. Again, enhancement15 is an enlarged view of the image that has been milled into pendant14. The image milled into pendant 14 is a replica of the image inprofessional drawing 12.

[0028]FIG. 5 shows bracelet 16 with jewelry pieces of many differentshapes hanging therefrom. FIG. 5 is intended to show that jewelryproduced by the present method can come in many different shapes.Further, the produced jewelry pieces do not have to be pendants, asshown in FIGS. 3(b) and 4(b). Jewelry produced by the present method canalso be charms worn on a bracelet, as is shown in FIG. 5. The producedjewelry can also be adapted to be worn as earrings, broaches, braceletswithout charms, and even rings. For band type bracelets and rings, theimage can be milled directly into the bracelet or ring, or the milledpiece can be mounted on or inserted into the bracelet or ring.

[0029] The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will sofully reveal the general nature of the invention that others can, byapplying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for variousapplications such specific embodiments without departing from thegeneric concept. Therefore, such adaptations and modifications shouldand are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range ofequivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood thatthe phraseology of terminology employed herein is for the purpose ofdescription and not of limitation.

I claim:
 1. A method for making a personalized piece of jewelrycomprising the steps of: digitally capturing a picture or drawing in acomputer; storing the captured picture or drawing as image data;manipulating the image data with computer software to produce anumerical milling command; replicating the picture or drawing on a pieceof metal by executing the numerical milling command on a computercontrolled milling machine; and adapting the piece of metal so it can beworn as a piece of jewelry.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein, thepicture or drawing is in color and the step of replicating includesadding color to the piece of metal so that a color replica is produced.3. The method of claim 1 wherein, the drawing comprises a child'sdrawing, a professional's drawing, or a handwritten message.
 4. Themethod of claim 1 wherein, the step of digitally capturing comprisesscanning or taking a digital picture of the picture or drawing.
 5. Themethod of claim 1 wherein, the step of digitally capturing comprisesimporting a picture or drawing that is already in a digital form intothe system.
 6. A computerized milling machine for making a personalizedpiece of jewelry, comprising: a digital capturing device for importing apicture or drawing; a memory for storing a digital representation of thepicture or drawing; a computer controlled milling machine; and,processing circuitry for reading the memory, creating milling machineinstructions, and controlling the milling machine in a manner thatresults in the picture or drawing being replicated on a piece of metalby the milling machine.
 7. The milling machine of claim 6 wherein,coloring agents are added to the piece of metal after milling so that acolor picture or drawing is replicated.
 8. The milling machine of claim6 wherein, the drawing comprises a child's drawing, a professional'sdrawing, or a handwritten message.
 9. The milling machine of claim 6wherein, the digital capturing device is a scanner or a digital camera.10. The milling machine of claim 6 wherein the picture or drawing isalready in a digital form and the digital capturing device merelyfacilitates importing the digital form into the machine.
 11. An articleof jewelry comprising a precious metal with an image milled into asurface of the metal by a computer controlled milling machine whereinthe image is a replication of a painting or drawing that was scanned orotherwise digitally captured by the computer controlled milling machine.12. The article of claim 11 wherein, the image that is replicated on themetal is in color.
 13. The article of claim 11 wherein, the image is achild's drawing, a professional's drawing, or a handwritten message.